Island



(No Model.)

L. E. SALISBURY. KNITTING MACHINE NEEDLE.

No. 287,175. Patented Oct. 23, 1883 UNITED STATES PATENT. omc

LEVI E. SALISBURY, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND.

KNITTING-MACHINE NEEDLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 287,175, dated October23, 1883. Application filed January 3 1, 1883. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern..-

Be it known that I, Lnvr E. SALISBURY, of

the city and county of Providence, in the State of Rhode Island, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Knitting-MachineNeedles; and I do hereby declare that the following specification, takenin connection with the drawings furnished and forming a part of thesame, is a clear, true, and complete description of my invention.

Needles embodying my invention have the points of their barbs closedupon the stem for casting off by the tension on the yarn which occupiesthe hook of the needle in knitting, 1 5 and, so far as my knowledgeextends, I am the first to accomplish that result with a needlepractically integral, or V in other words, one which does not contain,as heretofore, either a pivoted or a sliding latch of some kind.

The objects of my present improvement are rapid operation in knittingwith a minimum liability of. dropping stitches, the dispensing ofstop-motions and of presser-wheels, and the obviation of objections asto wear and cost, which are well known to be incident to needles whichembody pivoted or sliding latches. For accomplishing those ends I employa normallyopen spring barbed main hook, an auxiliary hook which ishoused within the main'hook, and is an integral or practically integralportion of the needle, and is united with the main hook near its point,so that when yarn occupying the auxiliary hook is under tension thepoint of the main hook is moved inwardly or toward the shank, thusclosing said hook upon the stem for enabling the needle to cast off aloop.

To more particularly describe my invention, I will refer to theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is an enlarged side view of mynovel needle. Fig. 2 is a vertical central section of the same with thehook open as in its normal condition. Fig. 3 is a similar view of thesame with yarn in the hook and the latter closed as for casting off aloop. Fig. 4 is a sectional view of a needle embodying my invention, buthaving its auxiliary hook separately constructed, and also a side viewof said auxiliary 5o hook detached.

It is to be understood that as my improvement relates to the hook of theneedle it is wholly immaterial whether the needles be otherwiseconstructed with reference to their vertical reciprocation or to theiruse in revolving 5 cylinder machines without reciprocation, al though itis with this latter class of machines that my novel needles have theirprime value.

The needle shown in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, is necessarily enlarged forthe purpose of illus- 6o tration; but some of the smaller sizes ofneedles embodying my invention so closely resemble the ordinaryspring-barb needle as to be undistinguishable therefrom, except on closeinspection. The shank of the needle is as heretofore, and is varied inits construction. according to the particular class of machine in whichit is to be used.

' The spring-hook or springbarb is normally open, and, as shown, isnovel, in that, in addition to the main hook a, it has the auxiliaryhook I), which occupies a position beneath the main hook and has itspoint extended toward the shank of the needle. This auxiliary hook inFigs. 1 to 3, inclusive, is integral with the hook, being formed from abranch of metal which is integral and merges with the main hook near itspoint; In Fig. 4 the main and auxiliary hooks are shown to be separatelyconstructed, but when united, as by a rivet, as shown at c, forinstance, the auxiliary hook is practically integral with the point ofthe main hook, and while this construction, in accordance with myinvention, is well suited for coarse needles, the strictly integral mainand auxiliary hooks are generally deemed preferable by me. In its bestform the needle is vertically recessed on its shank or stem at the frontside thereof, as at (2, so that the point of the auxiliary hook can beproperly housed in said recess, to prevent its undue engagement withyarn, and also, as at (1, so that the point or tip of the main hook canbe housed, to obviate liability of its engagement with a loop whilepassing over the closed hook. The auxiliary 9 5 hook is sufficient] yrigid to withstand all strains incident to tension on the yarn; but themain hook, at e, is sufficiently thin, flexible, and springy to enablethe point of the hook to be moved inwardly in closing, and to promptlyIce resume its normal open position when free to do so. As seen in Fig.2, the yarn f occupies the hook free from tension, and therefore saidhook is open; but, as seen in Fig. 3, the yarn is supposed to be undertension, and therefore the auxiliary hook is lifted, which causes thepoint of the inain'hook to move inwardly and occupy a closed position,which it will maintain until from any cause the tension on the yarn isterminated. It is immaterial 110w this tension is produced, as it isobvious a heavy spring-tension, the lifting action of a take-up, or thedepression of the needle, accompanied by resistance of the yarn, or thelifting action of the sinker-wheel, will each in like manner produce thedesired result, and so close the needle-hook as to enable a loop toproperly pass over the needle-hook in forming a stitch.

It will be seen that when the main hook is closed the top of the crownof the auxiliary hook is in contact with the under side of the crown ofthe main hook, and therefore the strength of the latter is renderedavailable in properly holding the yarn, regardless of the degree oftension thereon.

ltwill also be seen that if from any cause a needle fails to be suppliedwith yarn the hook remains open, thus enabling it to receive and retainthe old loop, thereby obviating all liability of drop-stitches andrendering stop-motions practically unnecessary.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent- 1. A normally-open spring-hook needle con- .tainingwithin themain hook an auxiliary hook which receives yarn in knitting,and merges with the main hook near its point, substantially asdescribed, whereby tension on yarn in said auxiliary hook causes themain hook to move inward and to close, as set forth.

2. A spring-hook needle having integral main and auxiliary hooks, thelatter being within the main hook and adapted to close said main hook bytension of the yarn upon the auxiliary hook in the operation ofknitting, substantially as described.

3. A spring-hook needle having, a main book, an auxiliary hook forclosing the main hook,-and a vertically-recessed shank or stem forhousing the points of both hooks, substan tially as described.

LEVI E. SALISBURY.

Vitnesses:

JOHN L. Ross, OSCAR LAPHAM.

